High-speed suspended railway



Se'pt. 3, 1929. F. KRUcKENBr-:RG Er A1.

HIGH 'SPEED SUSPENDED RAILWAY Filed April 27. 1928 2 Sheets-sneer 1 gn/ g.2 g

Sgpt. 3, 1929. F. KRCKENBERG ET AL 1,727,070

HIGH SPEED SUSPENDED RAILWAY Filed April 27, 1928 2 sheets-sneer 2 b Patented Sept. 3, 1929.

UNITED STATSESFPATENT OFFICE.

FRANZ KRUC'KENBERG-ANDWILLY BLACK, OF HEIDELBERG, GERMANY; SAID BLACK ASSGNOR- TO SAID KRUCKENBERG.

HIGH-'SPEED SUSPENDED RAILWAY.

Application' filed A'pril 2K7, 1928, Serial No 273,317, and in Germany November 25,1926.

only hang in one direction owing to the carrier arm extending over t-lie rail from one side. Consequently a front end can only follow a back end, or a back end follow a front end, and rtwo similar ends can never be adjacent.

For this reason it suffices to provide the buffer oi buffers at only one end, in all the Vehicles therefore only at the front or at the back.

A further important consideration in the design of the buffer is the speed atwhich the vehicle travels. At the speeds contemplated the air resistance is of extreme importance. Now, for example, a single locomotive buffer of about 400 mm. diameter, exposed freely to the air stream, has the sameair resistance as a streamline body of about 1600 mm. diameter which corresponds approximately to an aeroplane fuselage of usual size with an ideal streamline form. From this example it is clear that a high speed vehicle correctly designed to give the lowest possible air resist ance cannot have buffers of theusual kind built on to or into it.` n 1 Novel buiiers'and buffer arrangements are described below, in which all 'the conditions of their applicationhave beei'italrenl into account. i

rlhe inventionis illustrated diagrammati` cally and byway'of example on the accompanying drawings on which Figure v1 is a front-view (drawn to a very small scale)V of a high-speed suspended electric railway vehicle of the type for which our invention is intended; Figure2 is a side-view of that suspended vehicle,`and Figure 3 a similarrepresentation showing a modification of the same; Figures`4 and 5 axial sections through the adjacent endsof two adjacent vehicles,

of which one is provided with our improved buffer arrangement, these figures being drawnV to a greatly enlarged'scale relatively to Figs.

1-3 and the ,vehicles being supposed to be axledriven; Figure 6 is an axial .section through only one vehicle which iste be'driven by a propeller, the buffer arrangement beingr conibiiied with the propeller shaft, and F iguresr' 8 and ,9 show further modifications which are all fully described hereinafter.

Figures 4 and 5 of the accompanying drawings, show the buffer varrangement for axle driven vehicles. Only a single buer is used, mounted at the rear end, while the front end is correspondingly 'strengthened Ato take shocks. In order to cause no,for as little as possible, .additional air resistance, the shock receiving device is built into the streamline vehicle body vexcept for a length .equal tothe shock stroke. The buffer itself can bezpr0- vided inthe `usual way withconical, helical, ring or other springs. .In order not to damage the front wall ofthe adjacent vehicle, the

buffer head 1 is advantageously provided with a covering 2 of rubber or similar material.'Y

For the same reason, the front wall may'also have a shock absorbing cover 3 of the same material. The shock pressure is taken by f the further difficulty thatmonorail suspended' vehicles can swing, so thatthe contact point of the buffer is not so closely confined as inusual railway vehicles, but diverges more oi' less from thek centre line according to the amount of. swing, necessitatel ofthemselves that the buffer be located at the rear and that a receiving surfaceof as, largeY size ble be provided .at thel front.

AIt is more difficul to. arrange are more vclosely described below.

Figure 6 ofthe accompanying drawings shows an arrangementwith the buffer. on the propellerhu'b. The propeller 10, shownin this case as a'woodeii propeller, is securedin the usual way onv a shaft 13 by'means of flanges 11 and 12. A mounting 14 is boltedl to the hub together with the flanges 11 and 12. To this mounting, Vafter the propeller as possithe bufiing. when the vehicle is propellerf driven (Figure 3 of the accompanying drawing). There are. various possibilities. Several basic methods has been threaded upon or otherwise secured to the shaft, the actual buffer is secured and held to the rim l5 by screws. The buffer is a rubber ball filled with air under pressure and consists of a pneumatic type of a cover 16 of strong rubbcred linen, and a bladder 17 of soft rubber. The plate 18 on which the ball is mounted corresponds to the rim of a motor car wheel. The ball can be filled, when mounted, with air under pressure through a valve 19. The cone 2O through the nut 2l presses the bead of the outer ball into the rim and thus prevents its coming out under side blows. The inflated ball can naturally be replaced by a similar one of sponge or solid rubber or similar material, but the first has the advantage that its energy capacity for shocks ,can be altered as desired by regulating the air .pressure and 1t can be suited to the weight of the vehicle. A guided buffer of light construction can also be used instead of the ball. In all such arrangements, as in Figure 7, the shocks coming on to the propeller hub are transmitted from the shaft to the longitudinal carrier by a thrust bearing placed as closely as possible behind the hub. In the arrangement of Figure 7 a hollow propeller shaft 22 is used as the buffer guide. The buffer head 23 abuts against a helical or ring spring 24 carried inthe propeller shaft. The 'buer head 23 may for example be retained in the shaft by the'propeller nut 25 and the spring at the same time preloaded. The shock is again transmitted from the propeller shaft through a thrust bearing 26 to the longitudinal bearers 27 and 28 of the vehicle. A sheet metal ring 29 secured by screws to the propeller and into which the buffer 23 enters, as indicated by the chain lines, when shocks occur, is provided to maintain the streamline form of the vehicle.

Figure 9 shows a shock absorbing `arrangement inv which on the occurrence `of shocks the propeller shaft itself slides'axially and so acts as the buffer guide. The propeller is secured on the shaft in the usual way. The propeller shaft 30 is borne in a-bearing piston 32 sliding' 'in a body 3l. At any suitable point between the propellerl and motor shaft any usual axially sliding coupling, for example a splined coupling 33, is provided. The buffer spring 34 which can be in the form of Va helical, conical or ring spring abuts vat one end against the bearing piston 32, at the other and against the body 31 and transmits the shocks through this body to the longitudinal bearers 36 and 37. A safety distance 38 pro vided additionally to the maximum stroke completely protects all vital mechanical parts, particularly the driving gear and motor, from any damage through excessive shocks. The preloading of the buffer spring is greater than the highest propeller thrust toprevent floating movements to and fro of the propeller shaft. To maintain the streamline course of the vehicle contour the propel ler hub is provided with a'ring 39 in extension of the vehicle shell, which ring moves into the vehicle as indicated by the chain lines when a shock occurs. rIhe hub is here also provided with a shock absorbing covering l0 of rubber or similar material, which can be secured to the hub by the aid of an embedded metal ring ll and extended hub bolts 4t2.

With a large driving vehicle or two coupled vehicles (Figure 3) with two driving propellers, the front hub advantageously has a similar shock absorbing covering to the rear Y hub (Figure 8).

We claim:

l. In a vehicle having a body of streamline contour, a shock-absorbing element arranged at the end of said body and of a shape to '4. A vehicle of a type adapted to be ar-y ranged in trains, including a body of stream-Y line contour having a front end and a-rear` I end, said body being provided at its rearend with a shock-absorbing element of a shape substantially conforming to the streamline contour of the body and depressible toabsorbv shocks, the front end of said body being provided with a buffer member' against which the shock absorbing element of the preceding vehicle in a train may strike.

5. In a vehicle having a body of streamline contour, a shock-absorbing device arranged at one end thereof and of a shape to 'substan` tially conform to the streamlinecontour of the body, said shock-absorbing Adevice in cluding a resilient compression member to accommodate movement of the devicev axially of the body, ythe other end of said body provided with a buffer member rigidly mounted thereon.

v6. Ina vehicle for high-speed suspension railways, a body of streamline contour, an air propeller mounted at the end of said body, and means for absorbing shocks of impact of said'body, said means including a shock absorbing member of streamline contour to substantially conform to the streamline contour of the body, said shock absorbing member being carried by and rotatable with sai d. propeller.

7. In a vehicle for high-speed suspension railways, a body'of vstreamline contour, an air propeller mounted at the end of saidbody, Y

means for imparting rotation to said prowith said propeller and movable axally'relapeller mcludmg a drlvmg shaft, and means -tlvely to sald drlvmg shaft upon the occur- 'or absorbing shocks of impact of said body, rence of impact. 10 said means including a shock absorbing mem- In testimony whereof We ax our Signa- 5 ber of streamline contour to substantially contures. f

form to the streamline contour of the body, FRANZ KRUCKENBERG said shock absorbing member being rotatable WILLY BLACK. 

